Broken
by Zarosguth
Summary: Fate Testarossa Harlaown was a happy, successful and accomplished woman. However, as the saying goes: 'All good things must come to an end.' In Fate's case, this end leaves her broken and vulnerable. Will the help of her loved ones be enough for her to get her life back on track? [AU] [NanoFate] [TRIGGER WARNINGS: Rape and Physical Abuse.]
1. Chapter I

_**Foreword:  
**_Hello there, or 'Nice to meet you,' in case we haven't met before.

My name is Zarosguth and I welcome you to 'Broken'.

This first chapter is mainly an introduction. From chapter two and onwards things will be happening. Oh believe me, they will be happening.

I'm not entirely sure where I want to take this story yet but I suppose we'll figure that out as we get along. Should you at any one point see a direction you'd like me to take this story then do not be afraid to let me know through either a review or PM.

This story is not beta-read. I will try to catch as many mistakes as I can before uploading but if you ever see a mistake, please let me know so I can fix it.

With that, I will now leave you to the story. Enjoy.

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_I was awoken by a soft whimper coming from the person sleeping next to me. I was wide awake instantly. Looking over, I saw the blonde beauty besides me shaking uncontrollably. She was still sleeping but it was more than clear that her sleep was all but peaceful. The shaking, the sweating, the heart-breaking sobs, but worst of all was the sleep talking. A constant pleading for someone to 'Stop it!' accompanied by cries for 'Help!'._

_I couldn't bear to see her in such pain. I couldn't bear seeing the woman I love whimpering and pleading._

"_Fate-chan?" I whispered softly as I gently poked her shoulder. Her body tensed up for a moment before her eyes slowly fluttered open._

"_N-Nanoha?" she choked out, trying to fight back her tears. I did my best to fight back my own tears; she looked so hurt, so vulnerable, so broken._

"_I am here Fate-chan, everything is going to be alright." I soothed her as best I could, stretching my arms at her while being careful not to actually touch her; I didn't want to frighten her._

_Fate moved in slowly, wrapping her arms around my waist and placing her head on my chest. "Nanoha." My name left her lips in a whisper before she started crying. I carefully closed my arms around her. I felt her body tense up before relaxing again. I felt the fabric of my nightgown getting wet as Fate cried her heart out while I whispered sweet nothings in an attempt to calm her down._

_After a few minutes her crying slowly came to a halt and her breathing evened out. Despite her having calmed down I did not stop holding her. I just made soothing circles on her back until she finally spoke._

"_I'm sorry Nanoha; I'm being selfish." She whispered in a raspy voice, her throat raw from her crying._

_I shook my head. "No Fate-chan. It's okay to be selfish. Especially after what happened. I love you Fate-chan. I'm here for you. Nobody will ever hurt you again; I will protect you. That's a promise!"_

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter I**** }-~***

* * *

Fate T. Harlaown, a well-known name in the world of law was a hard-working attorney whom gave every case she took her fullest attention. She handled her clients with patience and respect. After all, Fate – in her mind – owed her current life to the woman in whose footsteps she followed. The footsteps of her adoptive mother, Lindy Harlaown.

Fate was a children's attorney, she handled the cases of children who had been victim of abusive parents or guardians. Children who were the same as she once was.

When Fate Testarossa was only nine years old she suffered abuse by her mother, Precia Testarossa. This abuse went from verbal abuse all the way down to physical. Precia would hang Fate by her wrists and beat her with a leather belt while calling her 'worthless trash' and saying Fate should never have been born.

It was not until one of her classmates – a certain brunette by the name of Nanoha Takamachi – saw Fate's injuries one day that things finally turned for the better in the life of young Fate.

With Nanoha's encouragement Fate stepped to the principal and admitted to being abused. The principal called in an old friend, a children's attorney by the name of Lindy Harlaown. Together, they managed to bring Fate's situation to light. Fate got removed from Precia's home and Precia herself was arrested. The following trials were more than a nine-year-old girl would ever have to experience, but eventually Precia was ruled guilty.

During the entire case Lindy Harlaown was there for young Fate and the two developed a bond. When it became clear that Fate had no other family left to care for her, Lindy didn't have to think twice about adopting the young Testarossa girl; she did so in a heartbeat.

In the Harlaown home, with adoptive mother Lindy and adoptive brother Chrono, Fate had a chance at a normal life. A chance she grabbed with both hands. She also became best friends with Nanoha, the two of them becoming almost inseparable.

When Fate turned eleven, she told Lindy she wanted to take on the Harlaown name. A few days later, Fate's name was officially changed to 'Fate Testarossa Harlaown'.

During high school Fate and Nanoha remained inseparable, even when Nanoha got a boyfriend by the name of Yuuno Scrya. Fate knew that by then she had developed feelings for the girl who'd helped save her life. But she kept this a secret, afraid of losing Nanoha's friendship should she ever find out Fate was gay.

It was not until high school graduation that Fate confessed to being gay, though she never explicitly mentioned her feelings for Nanoha herself. It was a very emotional event for the both of them but Nanoha, luckily, was a very open-minded person and the two stayed best friends.

After high school Fate took to studying law to follow in Lindy's footsteps while Nanoha studied to become an elementary school teacher. Yuuno meanwhile studied to become an archaeologist.

In college Fate – realizing she would never have Nanoha; she was straight after all – dated several women, but none of her relationships – if you could even call them that – lasted long. Something the blonde never lamented; she wasn't looking for a lifelong commitment. With Nanoha an unreachable goal, Fate put all her energy into her studies. Her 'relationships' serving purely as stress relief. Something she was respectful enough to make clear to her partners.

Despite their busy schedules Fate and Nanoha still managed to hang out together regularly. Often times, when Yuuno was on a trip with his professors as part of his studies, they would even do sleepovers at each other's apartments. During these times, Fate would allow herself the fantasy that she and Nanoha were a couple.

Even after they had finished their studies, Fate and Nanoha stayed best friends, LLBFF's.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Then came the 'Lu Rushe' case, Fate's first official case as an attorney.

Caro Lu Rushe was a young girl attending the school where Nanoha worked. Nanoha noticed how Caro acted whenever her mother was nearby. She recognized the signs almost instantly; Caro reminded her so much of Fate when they were that young.

Sadly, nothing could be done without proof. The only way anything could be done was if they got Caro to talk, so Nanoha staged a meeting between the little girl in her class and her best friend.

It took a lot of encouragement but eventually Fate managed to get Caro to admit to being abused. Fate was relieved to learn Caro never suffered physical abuse. But even then, she knew verbal abuse could be just as bad.

The case itself had been a tough one. Unlike Precia who was mentally disturbed and openly antagonistic towards her daughter, Caro's parents were well-respected political figures whom had extremely expensive lawyers to hide behind. But in the end, Fate managed to get Caro out of there. Caro was eventually placed in foster care and taken in by a loving foster family whom were more than happy to give this little girl a loving and safe home.

The evening right after Fate heard Caro ended up in a loving foster home, she visited Nanoha to tell her the great news. It was then, and only then that Fate finally allowed all of the emotions she felt during the case to run free. Nanoha had to soothe her, telling the blonde how proud she was of her best friend.

That pride was not reserved exclusively for Nanoha however, as Lindy was also extremely proud of her adopted daughter, as was the rest of the law firm Fate worked at. Being a case involving important political figures, the 'Lu Rushe' case even made the national newspapers, many of which were saying they expected great things from the young up-and-coming attorney that was Fate T. Harlaown.

When Caro came back to school a few days after the end of the case she sought out Nanoha and asked her to tell Fate thanks. A message the brunette was more than happy to deliver.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

After her first case it wasn't long before Fate got her second case, the case of Erio Mondial.

Erio's case was especially taxing on the young attorney; while Erio was, in fact, very much loved by his mother, his father was abusive and hit the young boy a lot. Erio's mother was devastated when he was taken away from them. Fate had always wanted to save children from parents that knowingly hurt them. But during this case she learned that her job also meant taking children away from loving parents because the other parent was not so loving.

In the end Erio was placed in foster care as well. His mother had not been allowed custody of her son because – while she didn't actively partake in the abuse – she _did_ allow for the abuse to happen.

Fate personally made sure Erio found a good foster home, which his mother thanked her for. Fate let her know he didn't do so for her, but purely for Erio's well-being.

Nanoha was Fate's rock to keep her steady during this case; the brunette didn't ask questions and just allowed Fate to vent her sadness. Fate had never had to explain anything that was happening with the case. Not that she was allowed to, but it was still nice. Nanoha understood, she didn't need any explanation; she had been with Fate every step of the way during Fate's own case when they were young.

It was during this period in their lives that Nanoha started to realize just how much she loved to hang out with Fate. She knew the golden blonde was a very strong person. Ever since they were children and the nine-year-old Fate Testarossa had to get through the whole trial that eventually freed her from Precia, Nanoha had only seen the blonde really break down once.

It was during the final trial, right after the jury found Precia guilty of abusing her daughter. While Precia struggled as the guards took her away, the elder Testarossa couldn't help but have her final say: "Let me tell you a little secret Fate, I have _always_ hated you!"

This was the first and only time Nanoha had ever seen her friend broken. A sight she never forgot. A sight she vowed to prevent with all her might from ever happening again.

It wasn't until the 'Erio Mondial' case that Nanoha saw Fate break down a second time. But this time was different; Fate didn't break down in helplessness, she just needed an opportunity to vent. Right after, Fate got to work again, finding a suitable home for the young Mondial boy.

Nanoha had never felt as much admiration for a single person as she felt for Fate then.

Inadvertently, Nanoha started comparing Fate to her boyfriend. The thoughts wouldn't leave her mind. Eventually, she started to doubt her and Yuuno's relationship. It wasn't that she didn't love Yuuno, but she found she wasn't _in _love with him. Nevertheless, Nanoha stayed with Yuuno, thinking that she was just going through a phase or something and that her adoration for Fate simply stemmed from admiration.

A few years went by. During that time Yuuno was often away on archaeological digs while Nanoha stayed behind and spent most of her time outside of work with Fate. Slowly but surely, Nanoha started to realize her adoration and love for her best friend were real. When Yuuno returned from a dig shortly after Nanoha had come to this conclusion, she broke up with him. She told him he deserved someone who could properly love him. That, as much as she loved him, she was not in love with him. Yuuno seemed defeated but he gave in in the end.

Fate was secretly overjoyed when Nanoha came to her apartment and told her she left Yuuno, she did her best to hide it though. She never really disliked Yuuno; he was a good person and he from what the blonde could tell, he did make Nanoha happy.

When the brunette admitted she left Yuuno because she'd realized she had feelings for someone else – 'a close friend', is what Nanoha had said – Fate didn't even let the thought it could be her that Nanoha was talking about cross her mind. She started going over all male friends they had but quickly came up empty; they had barely any and she knew it couldn't be her adoptive brother Chrono; he was engaged himself.

When Fate finally dared to ask the question of whom Nanoha had realized she'd had feelings for, the brunette averted her gaze and softly whispered "You."

Fate felt like her life had just become absolutely perfect. She had worked her dream job and had booked multiple successes. Her first two cases had been two very high profile cases at that, which had already given her career a head start – one she made the most of. She had a bright future ahead of her and now she would face that future with the woman she'd been in love with since she was young, as her girlfriend.

Fate Testarossa Harlaown was a happy, successful and accomplished woman.

However, as the saying goes: 'All good things must come to an end.'

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter I }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	2. Chapter II

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_I had just left for a conference in another part of the country. The second day of the conference had just come to an end and I was resting in my hotel room. For some reason, I could not sleep, despite how tired I was. Something felt… off. Like something big was going to happen._

_I tried to shake the feeling but the more I tried, the worse it became._

_Just when I finally thought I was going to be able to fall asleep my cell phone rang. I picked it up from the nightstand and glanced at the caller ID._

"_Hey-a Hayate, what're you doing, calling this late at night?" I greeted happily, it was not often me and Hayate got to chat; Hayate Yagami was a very busy woman, running a very popular – and pretty high-class – lesbian club with a few of her relatives._

"_Nanoha, it's Fate-chan." The grave tone in her voice made my heart sink immediately; something was wrong, I knew it._

"_W-what? What is it with Fate-chan? Hayate, tell me!" I started to panic, something was wrong with Fate-chan and I needed to know._

_It was silent for a moment before Hayate spoke again. "She's been attacked."_

_My breath hitched. "A-a-attacked?" I choked out._

"_Nanoha, how soon can you come home?" Hayate's tone was firm, making sure her question came across and forcing me to focus._

"_I'm taking the next available plane home!" I spoke quickly. Luckily I hadn't changed yet and I hardly ever unpacked my suitcase whenever I stayed at a hotel. I quickly stuffed the few items that had found their way out of my suitcase back into it._

"_Okay. Oh, and Nanoha?"_

"_Yes Hayate?" I stopped for a moment to listen._

"_Be safe."_

_I nodded despite Hayate not being able to see me. "Of course Hayate."_

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter II**** }-~***

* * *

As soon as Nanoha's plane landed and she passed by the gate she was greeted by a tall and intimidating pink haired woman with a stoic expression, Hayate's cousin Signum.

"Signum!" Nanoha ran up to the pinkette.

"Nanoha, come. I'll take you to Testarossa." Signum's voice did not betray much emotion but Nanoha could see a few cracks in Signum's stoic mask.

Signum had always had a deep respect for Fate; she recognized the blonde's strength. While they never seemed to be overly friendly to one another, the two of them always drove the other to do their very best. Despite working very different jobs, they acted like they were rivals competing for the same thing. Maybe they did, each in their own way.

The drive from the airport to the hospital was short. But to Nanoha, it felt like an eternity.

As soon as they arrived at the hospital Nanoha practically flew towards the reception desk.

"Fate T. Harlaown! Where is she? I need to see her!" Nanoha yelled at the nurse.

"Are you family?" The nurse asked in a calm tone, which immediately got on Nanoha's nerves.

"I'm her _girlfriend_!" Nanoha exclaimed loudly. Signum had caught up to her in the meantime and planted her hands on the brunette's shoulder to calm her down. Nanoha tried to shrug the pinkette's hands off of her.

"Nanoha Takamachi?" an unknown voice asked from a short distance away.

Nanoha's head turned so fast she almost gave herself a whiplash. The person who had called her name was a woman in a doctor's coat with medium-long, blue hair and yellow eyes.

"That's me, where is Fate-chan?!" Nanoha was crying now; she just wanted to see her girlfriend. Why wouldn't anyone let her see Fate-chan? Why were these people so goddamn _slow_?!

The woman – whom Nanoha presumed to be a doctor – walked up to Nanoha and introduced herself calmly.

"I am Dr Sachie Ishida. Come with me Miss Takamachi." The doctor said as she shook Nanoha's hand. Nanoha swallowed and tried to stop her tears from falling. She couldn't find her voice so she just nodded. Signum let go of Nanoha's shoulders and the two of them followed Dr Ishida.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Dr Ishida led both women to the Intensive Care Unit. She opened the door and let Nanoha walk in. Nanoha's eyes immediately fell on her girlfriend. She was lying in one of the beds, a mask covering her face to help her breathe and an IV dripping into her arm to keep her hydrated.

From where she stood Nanoha could clearly see Fate was in a bad state. Her face was covered in bruises and Nanoha could only imagine the state that the rest of the blonde's body was in.

Next to Fate's bed sat another familiar figure; Hayate was sitting there, keeping a close eye on the golden blonde sleeping in the bed.

Nanoha approached the bed quietly and hesitantly. Signum and Dr Ishida stayed at the door. As soon as Hayate heard someone approach she looked at. She and Nanoha locked eyes before the short-haired brunette gave her fellow brunette a quick nod and walked past her to join the two women at the door.

Nanoha kept walking until she reached the bed. She sat down on the now vacant chair. More tears started building up in the corners of her eyes. Nanoha slowly reached out for the golden blonde's hand, taking it between her own. She brought the hand to her own face and pressed it against her cheek, finally allowing the tears to flow.

From the doorway, Hayate, Signum and Dr Ishida looked as Nanoha started sobbing. Hayate was about to go and comfort her fellow brunette but Signum grabbed her shoulder and shook her head 'no'; Nanoha needed to have some time alone with Fate.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

It had been almost an hour since Nanoha had walked into the ICU. Hayate decided it was time to check up on her. When she approached her fellow brunette, Nanoha didn't react. She sat almost perfectly still, her cheeks stained with tears that were no longer flowing and her hand holding onto Fate's as if her life depended on it.

Hayate pulled up another chair and sat down next to Nanoha. Nanoha still hadn't acknowledged Hayate's presence and just kept her eyes trained on her and Fate's hands. The shorter brunette locked her eyes on the blonde as well and started speaking.

"Fate had come to visit 'Pink Velvet' to catch up with Signum and me. She was in such a good mood, she was smiling in a way I'd never seen her smile. When I asked what was wrong with her, she told me that the two of you had started dating a little over a week ago."

Nanoha remembered the day she confessed to Fate. The golden blonde had followed Nanoha's confession with one of her own. Nanoha was so very happy to hear that Fate reciprocated her feelings.

She had admired Fate for keeping her feelings in check for the past years. Nanoha felt guilty that she'd let the blonde wait that long while she was off with Yuuno.

"It was still pretty early in the evening when she left. She said she was tired as she had just picked up a new case two days ago." Hayate continued. Nanoha continued to listen in silence, focusing her attention on Fate.

"About half an hour after she left, Zafira came running in. He quickly made his way over to Signum and me and asked us to come with him quickly. I could see from the way he was acting that it was something serious; you know how Zaffy is, always calm and quiet but that time…" Hayate trailed off before she collected her thoughts again.

"Anyway, Signum and I followed him outside where he took us to where he… found Fate." Hayate drew a deep breath as she gathered her courage to tell Nanoha the exact state they'd found their friend in.

"Nanoha…" The tone in Hayate's voice caused Nanoha to tear her eyes away from her girlfriend and towards her fellow brunette. Tears were threatening to fall again from those violet eyes. Hayate however, kept her eyes trained on Fate, not daring to match her friend's stare. Not with what she had to say.

"She was beaten and _raped_."

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter II }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	3. Chapter III

_**Author's Note:  
**_I would like to respond to a guest review by davion that I have received on the previous chapter. I doubt said reviewer will read this but since it's a guest review I can't very well respond through a PM so I will do so here. Feel free to skip this Author's Note if you want.

I do not _entirely_ understand your frustration. You make it sound as if I would support a case of Yuuno or any other character raping someone else. Far from it. Rape is an inexcusable act and that is all there is to that. Also, while we're on the subject, I don't like people portraying Yuuno as a bad guy. Yuuno's a great character and one of the friendliest characters in the Nanoha cast and while I do not support Yuunoha, I do like to keep the two (and Fate) on friendly terms.

What I also don't understand is that you seem to think that Nanoha and Fate in this story aren't as strong as they otherwise are since Fate is getting victimized here. Fate _i__s_ a very strong woman. She will be able overcome all of this exactly because of that strength. Sadly the road to recovery is often painful, as it will be in this case.

As far as sharing your gender with the perpetrator of 99.9% of rape stories goes... I am of the male gender myself and I understand the frustration regarding that, especially since women can very easily rape another person as well (since rape is, by definition, non-consensual sex) but I don't think you should let that turn you away from other stories just because they happen to be from the same writer.

As far as your suspicions of the perp being Yuuno go... I don't want to say too much in fear of spoiling the story but this case is not as clear cut as it may seem. I implore that you give this story another chance; things _will_ get better.

In any case, I hope you will reconsider your stance at least regarding my other stories. Yet, if you truly decide to stop supporting my stories I will not stop you. I have no right to and you have the right to read (or not read) whatever you want. If you don't want to read about a woman coming to terms with the fact she was raped and move on with her life then that is fine. I understand that the subject matter is not for everyone. Believe you me that some parts of this story are very hard to write for me and that is not just because of the fact English is not my mother language.

This subject matter is difficult to both read, write and talk about for most people (let alone for the victims themselves). Understandably so.

With that response out of the way, (I really hope you're reading this davion; I want you to understand) I will leave you all with chapter III.

Enjoy.

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

"_She was beaten and _raped_." Those words felt like getting hit with a sledgehammer. Just when it seemed I was done crying new tears started flowing._

"_W-who?" I managed to ask through my tears. I couldn't fathom how anyone could ever lay a hand on the woman lying in the hospital bed before me. Hadn't she suffered enough in her life? Hadn't she suffered enough? By the hands of her own mother no less! Just who would do something like this?!_

"_We don't know." Hayate answered softly. "The perpetrator ran off when Zafira arrived in the alley after he'd heard Fate's cries for help. It was dark, he never got a good look at him."_

_I cast my gaze back to my lover. My hand was still desperately holding on to hers. I needed reassurance, I needed comfort, but the only person who would've been able to give me that was the one lying here, unconscious._

_I got off the chair and dropped to my knees next to the hospital bed. Leaning forward, I placed my head on her chest, careful not to apply any pressure so as not to hurt her. With my ear against her chest I could hear her heartbeat. It was slow but steady and, although minimal, it supplied some comfort. Hearing her heart beating reminded me that she was alive and that she would be okay._

_It might take a long time, but she would have my help. And together we would make sure everything would be okay again – eventually._

_It had to; the hope that everything would be okay was the only thing that kept me going._

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter III**** }-~***

* * *

It had been four days since Fate got admitted to the hospital. In that time, she had quite a few visitors. Her mother Lindy and her brother Chrono, as well as the Yagamis – Hayate, Signum, Zafira and their other two cousins, Shamal and Vita. Even Erio and Caro both came by once they'd heard what had happened. They were devastated to see the woman who'd changed their lives in the state she was in.

As for Nanoha, she didn't stray from her girlfriend's side. She'd called off work and spent every day at the hospital, trying to be as close to Fate as possible.

The Harlaowns and the Yagamis, as well as Nanoha's own family – her parents, Momoko and Shiro, and her siblings, Kyouya and Miyuki – kept close watch on the brunette; making sure she slept and ate.

Shamal Yagami was a doctor herself, but she'd asked Dr Ishida to take Fate as a patient instead, as the other doctor was the absolute best. Nanoha would've preferred to have a doctor who knew Fate, but she trusted Shamal's judgement of the blue-haired doctor's capabilities.

The fifth day after being admitted to the hospital, Fate T. Harlaown woke up.

Nanoha sat by her girlfriend's bedside, like she had done every day. She held Fate's hand and just stared at the blonde's face when…

"…!" Did her eyes just deceive her or…?

Nanoha's eyes grew wide, she swore she saw Fate's lips twitch. Gently, the brunette squeezed the blonde's hand.

"…!" It was weak, but Nanoha definitely felt it! Fate squeezed her hand back.

"Fate-chan? Are you awake? Fate-chan!" Fate's eyes slowly fluttered open. It was the first time in days Nanoha finally got to see those beautiful red eyes again.

"Fate-chan!" Nanoha cried in joy. A nurse that passed the room heard Nanoha's voice and walked in. She saw the blonde patient that had come in a few days before had opened her eyes. She immediately called for Dr Ishida and made her way over to the blonde and the brunette.

Fate and Nanoha stared at each other for a moment. Tears of joy flowing down Nanoha's cheeks while a weak smile pulled at Fate's lips.

"Hey…" Fate's voice sounded hoarse and weak. It was even softer than usual but Nanoha couldn't be happier to finally hear her lover's voice again.

"Hey…" Nanoha greeted back, her tears ever flowing.

"Please don't cry." Fate spoke weakly. "Don't ruin that beautiful face with tearstains." The blonde said as she shifted to lie a bit more on her side and lifted the arm whose hand Nanoha wasn't holding to clasp Nanoha's hand between her own.

Nanoha managed a short laugh before bringing her other hand to hold both of Fate's.

"I'm so glad you're okay." Nanoha whispered as she pressed their holding hands to her forehead.

The tapping of footsteps made both women look up as Dr Ishida approached them.

"It's good to see you're awake." The blue-haired doctor spoke. "I am your doctor, Sachie Ishida."

"I would say nice to meet you, but…" Fate's reply was soft, but her voice was strong. Dr Ishida was happy to see her patient attempting to lighten the depressing atmosphere.

"I understand, don't worry about it; I won't take it personally." The doctor smiled.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

After Dr Ishida had finished a quick examination of Fate's injuries and asked the blonde about any discomfort – of which Fate said there was none – she left the two women alone.

Once they were sure they were alone Fate – who was now sitting upright – looked Nanoha in the eyes for a moment. Nanoha could already see it coming and clasped the blonde attorney's hands in her own.

Fate's smile fell and tears started forming in her eyes. Then, just like that, her mask broke and the tears started pouring out. Despite her bruised ribs, Fate leaned over towards Nanoha. The elementary school teacher carefully wrapped her arms around Fate's crying form.

Fate was never one to show weakness to anyone. The only people ever having seen her show weakness were Nanoha and Lindy. For everyone else Fate would seem like an immovable wall of toughness; it was the only way the blonde learned dealing with her mother. If Fate ever showed weakness in front of Precia, the elder Testarossa would only punish her more severely.

But right now, with nobody else around Fate allowed herself to be vulnerable. Wrapped in Nanoha's arms she felt safe and secure.

Fate repeatedly choked out Nanoha's name while clinging to the brunette desperately.

Nanoha just continually whispered sweet nothings to Fate to soothe her.

Once the crying started to slowly subside Fate tried to speak: "Nanoha… I-I… I. He. I w-was…"

"Ssh…" Nanoha shushed Fate. "Just take it easy alright? You don't have to say anything. Okay?"

Nanoha felt the golden blonde give a weak nod. While she had stopped crying, Fate's breathing was still shaky and she was still trembling.

Both women were too preoccupied to have heard the door to the room opening and closing. Hayate, Signum and Vita were planning to visit their recently awoken friend, but catching a glimpse of what was transpiring in that room made them turn around immediately to give the two women in there some space.

They now stood outside the room. Signum was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. She was clenching her fists tightly, making her hands tremble. Her usually stoic expression was replaced by a look of pure rage.

"If I ever find out who did that to Testarossa, I will _break_ them." She declared through gritted teeth.

Vita had taken on a similar pose, except she wasn't leaning against the wall.

"When you're done with that, I will crush whatever is left." The short redhead all but growled.

Hayate was simply silent; she was shocked by the state she had seen Fate in. Nanoha's question a few days ago, the question of 'Who?' found itself into her mind. Who would do such a thing to Fate? Fate was such a gentle, kind soul. She knew of Fate's childhood, even though she didn't know the blonde at the time. But she had heard the story once and it had shocked her.

And now someone dared to do this to Fate? Beat her up and even worse, rape her? Hayate made a mental note to speak with Chrono; Fate's brother was a respected, high-ranking officer with the police. She was sure he could pull a few strings to ensure that Fate's case would get the highest priority.

They would nail this scumbag, and then Hayate would make sure to nail his balls to the wall before releasing her family – Signum, Vita and Zafira – on him.

That son of a bitch was going to _pay_!

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter III }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	4. Chapter IV

_**Author's Note:  
**_This chapter will contain the actual rape scene and it is rather violent so do be warned. The scene itself does contain some important story elements but I won't blame you if you want to skip over it. I will indicate the scene itself with ***'s so you know it's coming and when it's ending.

If you _do_ read the scene, I would love it if you could give me some feedback on it; it's my first time writing about something like that and I'm pretty nervous about it.

With that I present to you, Chapter IV.

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_It had been a day since Fate woke up and I had been with her that whole day. In front of our friends she kept up her mask. It was hard for me to see her act like she was fine. Still, I admired her; she did her best to be as strong as she could be. I never spoke with anyone about the time Fate and I were alone. The time she cried her heart out and allowed herself to be vulnerable._

_I was the only one allowed to ever see her like that. Even when it was just me and Lindy that were with her, Fate kept up the façade that she was fine._

_On the bright side, Fate's physical injuries were healing nicely according to Dr Ishida. She was still in a lot of pain though. The worst part was that she had not just gotten injured because of the beating. The perpetrator had not only raped Fate directly, but he had also used a tool – which the doctors suspected to be something like an empty glass bottle – which had inflicted vaginal and rectal lacerations. Fate could hardly sit and was in a lot of pain whenever she used the toilet._

_That morning I found a surprise on my doorstep as Chrono stood there just as I was about to go to the hospital._

"_Chrono-kun!" I said in surprise._

"_Nanoha." He nodded at me in greeting. His overall posture was nervous. Had the situation been any different, I would've joked about the mighty Chrono being a nervous wreck. But his hesitation made it clear that this visit was about Fate, and it was serious._

"_What is it?" I immediately asked. "Is something wrong with Fate-chan?!" I felt panic starting to rear its ugly head in my subconscious._

"_No, no Fate's fine." Chrono said quickly. From the tone of his voice I could hear he wasn't saying that just to keep me calm. I breathed a small sigh of relief; Fate was fine, Fate was safe at the hospital._

"_I just got here to give you a little heads-up; I pulled a couple of strings, contacted the lieutenant of the police department's special victims unit, Genya Nakajima." I nodded in understanding. I knew Hayate had spoken to Chrono about calling in some favours. Chrono had assured her he had already planned to do so; Fate was his sister after all. It was his job as an older brother to protect her._

"_He told me he'd put his best team of Fate's case. If anyone can nail the bastard that hurt her, they can. The reason I am telling you this is because a couple of detectives are going to come by to ask Fate some questions today. I was hoping you'd stay with her and support her. She'll have to be open about what happened and you are the only person I know that has ever been able to fully open her up."_

_I nodded again, remembering the previous day. The only one that had been allowed to see Fate cry had been me._

"_You can count on me Chrono-kun! There is no way I'm going to let Fate go through all of this alone. I love her!" I spoke determinedly._

_Chrono smiled at me before pulling me into a strong hug. "Thank you Nanoha, I'm so glad Fate has someone like you in her life. She's so very lucky in that respect."_

_Chrono's words made me smile. While he usually kept up the image of a tough police lieutenant, I knew he had a giant soft spot for his family and friends. "I'm pretty sure the lucky one is me Chrono-kun."_

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter IV**** }-~***

* * *

Nanoha had arrived at Fate's hospital room about fifteen minutes ago and after initial greetings both of them hadn't spoken a word. They just enjoyed each other's company, glad to be together. Nanoha sat next to Fate's bed and held her hand. The blonde was just happy to have the brunette so close.

It had always been Nanoha. Back when they were little and Fate first enrolled in Nanoha's school as the 'new kid', Fate had felt something different when she laid eyes on the woman whom was now her girlfriend.

Before she could dwell on the past however, a knock was heard on the door to Fate's hospital room. Nanoha noticed Fate's slight flinch at the sound as well as the fact Fate's grip on Nanoha's hand got tighter. The blonde had been on edge and hyper alert all the time ever since she woke up. Truth be told, she had always been more alert than others ever since she was taken in by Lindy and taken away from Precia, but that had gotten better over time. But now, her anxiety had returned with a vengeance.

Nanoha gave her girlfriend's hand a reassuring squeeze and whispered that everything was going to be alright before asking the person who'd knocked to come in.

Upon Nanoha's invitation the door opened and a young woman, about two years younger than Nanoha and Fate with long bluish purple hair walked in. Upon seeing this stranger, whom was clearly not part of the hospital staff judging by her more casual clothing, Fate's anxiety got worse as she tried to bury her body deeper into the hospital bed.

"I'm sorry to disturb you. I am detective Ginga Nakajima, Special Victims Unit." The young woman introduced herself.

"Nanoha Takamachi." Nanoha introduced herself, shaking the detective's hand.

Fate had gotten herself to relax in the meantime, relieved to learn the young woman had no evil intentions. "Fate Harlaown." She also introduced herself, shaking Ginga's hand.

"I will not beat around the bush," Ginga said, getting right down to business, "I'm here to talk to you about what happened, Miss Harlaown."

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Fate knew she was going to have to talk to the police about what had happened eventually; her brother was sure to get the best of the best on her case. She knew him well enough that she knew he would pull a few strings to get that to happen.

Fate knew it was going to be difficult. She was unsure of whether or not she should send Nanoha away, or if she should ask for the brunette to stay. She was about to ask her girlfriend what she wanted to do when she felt her hand being given a strong squeeze, though not strong enough to hurt. That was when she knew, Nanoha was here to help her through it.

The blonde smiled affectionately at the brunette before mentally preparing herself. She put up her mask of indifference and mentally detached herself from what had happened. She brought herself into a state of mind in which she could look at the events of that night as if it wasn't her, but someone else that had gotten attacked.

"What do you need to know, detective?" Her voice had become void of emotion and if Ginga was surprised at the change in tone and expression, she did not show it.

"I want you to tell me what happened that night. Anything you can remember can be important in this case." Was the detective's answer.

Fate took a deep breath to steel her nerves. Her hand tightened its grip on Nanoha's. Then, she started talking.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_Flashback, six days ago, the day of the attack…_

_Fate had just bid farewell to Hayate and Signum after she'd visited them that evening at 'Pink Velvet', Hayate's club._

_Stepping outside, Fate waved the bouncer – Hayate's cousin Zafira – goodbye and he returned the gesture._

_Walking away from the club, Fate turned into an alleyway that would provide her a shortcut to get home quicker. She'd gotten a few steps into the alley when she heard the sound of footsteps behind her._

_Growing nervous, the blonde slightly increased her pace. Her fears grew worse when the footsteps following her also started to increase in pace._

_Fate was about to go into an all-out sprint when she felt a pair of hands grab her, one got slung around her shoulders, over her chest while the other covered her mouth, preventing the blonde from screaming. A strong smell of alcohol filled her nose as Fate grabbed hold of the arms that had taken hold of her and tried to shake them off. She thrashed and resisted as the man that had grabbed her tried to subdue her._

_Unfortunately, Fate's struggles were brought to a halt when the man swung against the wall. The resulting blow to her head wasn't hard but it was enough to stun her. Unable to fight back or even move at all, Fate was laid down against the brick wall her head had been slammed into._

******* _Her vision was blurry and her mind was hazy. She felt the man tug at her skirt as he forced it off her._

_Despite her grogginess due to getting her head slammed into a brick wall, Fate still managed to plead to the man. "No, stop it!" though her speech was horribly slurred._

_The man ignored her and ripped off her panties next, leaving the young woman's privates exposed._

_Tears welled up in Fate's eyes as she could make out the man zipping down his pants. "Why…?" was all she managed to choke out before the man kneeled before her with his pants down and forcefully spread her legs with his hands._

"_You have been a bad girl," the man accused in an eerily calm voice, "so now I will have to punish you!"_

_Fate's ears were ringing but despite that she had heard the man's words clearly. His voice however, she could not recognize as it sounded distorted to her. She did note it was relatively high-pitched._

_That was when he took her. Pain ripped through the blonde's body as she was penetrated. She tried to scream but the man jammed a piece of cloth in her mouth to silence her attempt._

_Pulling out of Fate, the man turned her around to lie on her stomach. Watching over her shoulder she could make out the image of him holding something in his right hand. Before she could get a good look to see what it was, she felt one of his hands coming to rest on her left butt cheek._

_Next thing she knew Fate felt something entering her anus. The cloth that was stuck in her mouth prevented her from screaming in pain. The pain was worse than anything she had ever felt in her life. Flashbacks of her life with Precia started flooding her mind, but even the pain from those memories didn't compare to the unimaginable pain she felt at that very moment._

_The man proceeded to kick her as she lay there, already writhing in pain. He was calling her a dyke, a bitch and other derogatory terms. The scariest part of it all was that he was not yelling at the top of his lungs. Instead, he sounded calm – eerily so – as he kept accusing her of being a bad girl and deserving to be punished._

_The pain becoming too much, darkness started to creep up in the corners of Fate's eyes and she lost consciousness. _*******

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

"I don't remember much after blacking out. I vaguely remember seeing Zafira's concerned face as he told me he would get help. Next time I know I wake up here in the hospital a few days ago." Fate concluded her story to the detective.

Ginga nodded and wrote down a final few notes on a notepad before turning to Fate again. She could see the blonde was close to cracking so she decided she'd ask her follow-up questions later.

"Thank you Miss Harlaown. You really are a very brave individual. Do not worry; we will catch the bastard that did this to you. We might some more questions for you later if that's alright with you."

"Of course." Fate said solemnly. Ginga barely caught the blonde squeezing her girlfriend's hand.

The detective gave the blonde a reassuring smile as she thanked her again. Turning to Nanoha she thanked the brunette as well before she left the two of them alone.

Outside the hospital room Ginga went over Fate's story in her head. What stuck to her more however was the _way _in which the blonde had told her what'd happened. Her voice was void of emotion and her eyes were distant. It was as if she'd distanced herself from what had happened. But rather than it being due to the trauma itself, it was more as if she'd done so deliberately.

_And then there was that mask that she used to hide her emotions…_ Ginga visibly shivered as it dawned on her that the attorney may have experienced more than one traumatic event in her life.

Nanoha and Fate's hands were still holding on to each other. Nanoha had had tears running down her cheeks as she was listening to the horrible things that had been done to Fate.

The brunette teacher sincerely hoped Ginga would make good on her promise to catch the person that had hurt and violated the love of her life.

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter IV }-~***

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	5. Chapter V

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_Fate's physical injuries were healing nicely and Dr Ishida said she'd be able to get discharged from the hospital soon, she'd only have to stay another week at most. I could see Fate was glad to hear that; she never liked hospitals._

_Ever since she was little she'd had a resentment of them because at the hospital people always asked questions. Questions she couldn't answer when she was a child. Questions about her injuries and if her mother was treating her alright._

_I thought back to the day before when Detective Nakajima came to ask Fate about the assault. I couldn't get the scenes out of my head. The worst thing of it all was that the words of the man who had assaulted Fate made it clear she had been a deliberate target. Someone actually went after her._

_That thought scared me._

_With the line of work she was in, it didn't come as a surprise that Fate had made enemies. She had received threats in the court room, but until then nothing had actually come from those._

_But now, it had. Someone had gotten angry enough to attack Fate. What if every single person that had made threats against her would lash out?!_

_No! I can't allow myself to think like that. The important thing right now is that I help Fate get through this. The police are after the man that hurt Fate and now it is up to me to help Fate herself. I had seen enough in the past after Lindy had adopted Fate to know that there would be nightmares. Fate already got nervous easily when it came to physical contact and that was something that was bound to be worse now. After all of this, I had been afraid Fate would not even let me touch her._

_Luckily, she had allowed me to hold her, had sought out my touch. While she flinched or stiffened whenever I initiated contact, she would relax quickly – which made me hopeful that eventually she would get over this, get past this._

_I vowed I would support her every step of the way._

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter V**** }-~***

* * *

"I think it's best if we broke up."

The words leaving Fate's mouth were met by a pair of disbelieving violet eyes.

The two of them had just exchanged greetings when Fate suddenly said those words.

"What…?"

"I think it's _best_ if we broke up." The blonde attorney repeated in a more heated tone. "I've been thinking about what happened ever since I told detective Nakajima. He _targeted_ me. That means he knows who I am and that means he must also know about _you_."

Fate sounded angry and scared as her eyes were trained on the bright white ceiling. Nanoha saw how a number of tears gathered in those burgundy red eyes she loved so much. She could see how much the idea of the two of them breaking up hurt Fate.

But she also understood the blonde's reasoning.

"And you're thinking he might end up targeting me because we're lovers."

Fate slowly nodded in conformation.

"Even so, you can't expect me to leave you just like that Fate-chan!" Nanoha's voice was stern, borderline angry. It was just like Fate to try something like this and despite the fact the blonde may have had the best intentions, Nanoha would have nothing of it.

"Nanoha…"

"No, Fate-chan!" Nanoha interrupted before Fate got a chance to object. "I am not walking away from you now, or in the future. I love you and there is simply no way I'm going to break up with you."

Fate seemingly accepted Nanoha's resolve as she nodded at her girlfriend and whispered a very soft 'thank you'.

Nanoha took Fate's hand and gently kissed her knuckles before giving her a loving smile. "Now, I have a surprise for you. Come on in!" Nanoha and Fate turned their attention to the door.

The door opened revealing two teenaged children, a red-headed boy and a pink-haired girl.

"Fate-san!" the two youngsters chorused.

"Erio! Caro!" Fate slapped her hand in front of her mouth; she was overcome with emotion.

"Fate-san!" The two said again as they rushed towards Fate's bedside.

"We were so worried when we heard what happened!" Caro cried as she and Erio were taken into a deep hug by the blonde attorney.

Fate shushed her gently as she hugged the two kids as best she could. "Thank you. I'll be fine." She whispered softly. And for that moment, she believed it.

Fate kept contact with all the children she worked with. Whether they were the victims of abusive parents or whether she was handling the case of their custody, she always wanted to be sure the children she worked with ended up somewhere good.

In time, Fate's colleagues ended up calling them 'Fate's kids'.

Erio and Caro, being her first two cases, were extra special; if anything ever were to happen to their foster families, Fate would gain custody over them. While most definitely not common practice, Fate had made sure such an arrangement was made anyway.

As a result, both Erio and Caro were very close with the blonde children's advocate and had wanted to visit Fate as soon as they'd heard she was in the hospital. They had of course been spared the details of what had happened to Fate. All they were told was that a bad man had hurt her.

Nanoha thought it best to leave Fate alone with 'her kids' for a moment.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Stepping outside the room, Nanoha let out a sigh. It was the first time since the attack she'd seen a genuine smile on her girlfriend's face. The brunette knew how much Fate cared about Erio and Caro. She had been a first-hand witness to how Fate handled her first case – Caro's case. She'd seen the attorney showing great care for the pink-haired girl while working meticulously to bring the abuse to light.

Nanoha had been there for the emotional release after the case was finished. And while the case had been finished officially, Fate's work was far from done as she tried to find a good place for the young Lu Rushe to stay.

For a moment Nanoha wondered if the blonde attorney would go back to work one day. She quickly answered her own question with a resounding 'yes'; Fate loved her work too much to ever stop. Even if it would endanger her life, Fate would never give up what she was doing no matter what.

Nanoha felt she couldn't admire Fate's strength enough.

Nanoha felt so lucky to be able to call Fate her girlfriend. Fate's willingness to sacrifice her own happiness with the brunette to keep her safe only spoke of the great love the blonde felt towards her.

A love that had existed for many years now. A love Nanoha had only started reciprocating roughly two weeks ago.

"Nanoha?"

The sudden calling of her name pulled Nanoha from her thoughts.

"Yuuno-kun?"

Before her stood her ex-boyfriend, a handsome man with long sandy blonde hair tied into a ponytail. His emerald green eyes covered by a pair of thin-rimmed glasses, Yuuno Scrya.

"What're you doing here?" Nanoha asked. Her tone wasn't accusatory or angry, just genuinely curious. Yuuno and Fate never got along very well and it wasn't until recently that Nanoha understood why Fate had never had the greatest opinion of the blonde man.

Yuuno was by no means a bad person but jealousy can colour someone's opinion easily.

"I heard what happened and I wanted to make sure you were okay." He gave her an sympathetic smile. "I know me and Fate never got along very well but this…" Yuuno sighed. "This is just… how can anyone do something like that?"

Nanoha didn't respond; she didn't know what possessed people into doing such vile things.

"How are you holding up?" the young archaeologist asked.

Nanoha felt tears well up in her eyes. She had been too focused on her girlfriend to take stock of her own state of being. And truth be told, with everything that was going on, she was exhausted and scared.

Yuuno saw the unshed tears in Nanoha's eyes and instinctively took her into a hug.

"Sssh…" he shushed her gently as she started sobbing. "Fate's strong, she'll be alright okay?"

Nanoha smiled; she knew Yuuno still had feelings for her but it seemed he was respectful enough to just soothe Nanoha without ulterior motives.

"Thank you Yuuno-kun." She said as she pulled away from him.

Yuuno simply smiled. "Anytime, I'll always be your friend Nanoha."

A voice that was familiar to Nanoha but not to Yuuno suddenly spoke up.

"Mr Yuuno Scrya? I need you to step away from Miss Takamachi!" Detective Ginga Nakajima approached the two with purposeful steps.

Yuuno did as he was told and looked at the detective in confusion. "Excuse me? You are…?"

"Detective Ginga Nakajima of the Special Victims Unit." Ginga flashed her badge before walking up to Yuuno. She was accompanied by a uniformed officer and a man with short brown hair and blue eyes whom Nanoha presumed was detective Nakajima's partner in law enforcement.

"Yuuno Scrya, you're under arrest on suspicion of the rape and beating of Fate Testarossa Harlaown."

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter V }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	6. Chapter VI

_****__**Author's Note:**_  
Just a quick reply to Kura (I would PM you but since you don't have an account, I'll respond to you here):

I have already planned out the main plot line for this story. Who the villain is, as well as their motivation, are already set in stone. Or at least set in my mind.

I will keep it at that to prevent from myself from spoiling anything. I hope this answer satisfies your question.

On with the story!

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

"_Yuuno Scrya, you're under arrest on suspicion of the rape and beating of Fate Testarossa Harlaown."_

_A gasp escaped my lips as detective Nakajima turned Yuuno around and cuffed him. She handed him to the man I'd assumed was her partner – Vice Granscenic as I would later learn his name was – whom started reading Yuuno his rights while he protested._

"_What is going on?! What do you mean? I would never-"_

"_Save it for interrogation." Detective Granscenic cut in._

_As he looked over his shoulder, Yuuno cried out. "Nanoha! Please believe me, I never harmed Fate and I never would!"_

"_Shut up and keep walking!" detective Granscenic snapped as he pushed Yuuno further down the hall._

_I was dumbfounded; I could not believe it. Did Yuuno really do it? I just couldn't picture him ever doing something like that. Yuuno was kind and friendly to a fault. It just didn't make sense to me._

_I felt a hand land on my shoulder and I jumped at the sudden touch. Turning around I came face to face with detective Nakajima._

"_Mr Scrya is your ex is he not?"_

_The dryness in my throat made it impossible for me to form words I just nodded dumbly._

"_How did he take it when the two of you broke up?"_

_Taking a deep breath and shaking my head I collected my thoughts and answered._

"_Quite well actually. He um… he was obviously upset but he also said he had uh… he had always had his suspicions." A short chuckle escaped me. "I guess he had it figured out before I even did."_

"_Figure what out?" the detective urged me gently._

"_That I had feelings for my best friend." I answered shyly._

"_Alright." Detective Nakajima smiled. "I have to go to the precinct now. I will keep you posted on any progress we make okay?" she gave my shoulder a light squeeze and then left._

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter VI**** }-~***

* * *

Yuuno found himself in an interrogation room, waiting. He was nervous to say the least.

Lost in his own thoughts he jumped when the door suddenly opened. He made to stand up to speak to the detective entering the room.

"Sit down." Detective Ginga Nakajima said in a tone that made it clear _she_ was in charge here. Yuuno complied obediently, waiting for the detective to begin.

"You know why you're here so let's get this over with quick." Ginga threw a couple of photographs down in front of Yuuno. As soon as Yuuno saw them he winced and averted his gaze.

"Don't like the result of your work?" Ginga asked flatly.

Yuuno took a deep breath and faced the detective. He folded his hands in front of him on the table, careful not to touch the photographs. His eyes fell on them again and it looked like he was about to puke.

The pictures showed Fate right after she'd been admitted to the hospital. She was horrible bruised and was wearing an oxygen mask. Dried up splotches of blood were still present in the blonde's golden tresses.

"What is it? Got nothing to say?" Ginga snapped at the blonde male.

Yuuno took a deep steadying breath before speaking. "I did _not_ hurt Fate in any way, shape or form." He spoke clearly and purposefully.

"Then how do you explain this?" Ginga asked as she threw down a file. Yuuno looked at it with curiosity.

"That is the DNA profile of the semen found on the victim." Ginga explained before leaning over the table to get up close to Yuuno's face. "And it is a match for your own." She spoke through gritted teeth.

"T-that's not possible!" Yuuno exclaimed in a panicked voice. "I haven't been anywhere near Fate ever since I broke up with Nanoha!"

"DNA does not lie Mr Scrya. People do."

"You don't understand! I would never knowingly hurt another human being, no matter what!" Yuuno stood up as he grew agitated.

"Sit down, Mr Scrya." Ginga spoke calmly, though she was ready to get up and subdue Yuuno herself if she had to.

Yuuno clutched his hands into fists but did as told. As he sat down his eyes inadvertently fell on the pictures of Fate again. Feeling defeated he rested his head in the palms of his hands as he leaned on the table with his elbows.

Ginga waited a moment to see if the blonde archaeologist would start talking again. After a brief moment he did. "I would never hurt anyone, much less the person that can bring out Nanoha's most wonderful smile."

"It must've hurt, losing your girlfriend to a woman." The detective remarked. She tried to get Yuuno's other side to show. The side that _could_ hurt another human being. The side that had hurt Fate T. Harlaown.

Yuuno looked up from his hands and glared at the detective.

"It did, for about five minutes." Ginga raised a questioning eyebrow in response to that statement.

"I have always had my suspicions about the two of them…" Yuuno started explaining. When the detective said nothing he continued.

"The way Nanoha's eyes lit up whenever she spoke about Fate. I knew Fate had feelings for Nanoha and from what I had gathered, Nanoha had feelings for her too. She just did not seem to realize it. I'll be honest; I hoped she would grow out of it, but after some time it became clear that she wouldn't."

Yuuno breathed deeply to steady himself.

"I won't lie… It still hurt when Nanoha said she wanted to break up with me. She said something about realizing she had feelings for someone else and that it felt wrong of her to string me along when I deserved someone who could properly love me…" Yuuno chuckled softly.

"Feelings for Miss Harlaown." Ginga stated questioningly, though she knew the answer.

Yuuno turned his gaze to her and locked eyes with the detective.

"Yes." He confirmed solemnly.

"So let me get this straight: You're saying you would never knowingly hurt another human being and that you were okay with your girlfriend breaking up with you and jumping into another woman's arms."

Yuuno groaned at the way the detective worded that last part but nodded his head. "Yes."

"That still doesn't explain how your semen was found on the victim!" Ginga pointed out with a raised voice.

"Maybe your people made some sort of mistake!" Yuuno yelled desperately.

"The lab triple checked Mr Scrya. It is _your_ semen, _your_ DNA, there's _no_ mistaking it!"

Yuuno let out a sigh and rested his forehead on the heels of his hands. "I wasn't even anywhere near Pink Velvet when it happened."

"And how do you know of time and location Mr Scrya?"

"Hayate told me when I ran into her the other day."

Ginga raised an eyebrow. "Hayate?"

"Hayate Yagami, a mutual friend of Nanoha, Fate and mine." Yuuno answered with a sigh.

"Alright Mr Scrya, if you were nowhere near the crime scene during the time of the crime, then where were you?" Ginga asked without missing a beat.

Yuuno looked up from his hands, a tiny glimmer of hope that the detective might believe him shining in his eyes. "At the university, cataloguing the finds from my most recent archaeological dig."

"Is there anyone that can confirm this?" the detective asked the obvious follow-up question.

"One of my assistants, Aria Liese. She was helping me. We were working throughout pretty much the entire night. Ask her, she will confirm my words."

"Very well, I will do so." Ginga said, picking up the photographs and the file from the table before walking out of the interrogation room without saying another word.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Stepping outside the interrogation room Ginga ran into her partner, detective Vice Granscenic.

"Did you make the bastard sing?" he asked gruffly, offering his partner a cup of coffee from his left hand while holding one for himself in his right.

"He said something about never knowingly hurting another human being. When I asked about the DNA evidence we found, he lawyered up." Ginga responded, rubbing her temples.

Vice nodded in understanding.

"Have you looked into the possibility of it being someone related to Miss Harlaown's work? Someone she got convicted or an unhappy father that lost a custody battle?" Ginga asked her partner as she took the offered cup.

"I have, but so far nothing. I don't see why we're looking into that though; the DNA evidence is pretty damning." The male detective said as he took a sip of his coffee.

"I just don't want to leave any loose ends…" the female detective trailed off, staring into space, seemingly content to just hold her cup instead of drinking from it.

Vice observed his partner for a moment. "What're you thinking Ginga? I know that look, something's bothering you."

Ginga finally took a sip of coffee before answering. "I don't know Vice… _Something_ just doesn't add up."

"What? Don't tell me you believe that guy!" Vice laughed, though there was no humour behind it.

Ginga sighed. "I'm just saying that Mr Scrya looks like a very straight-up guy. His criminal record is also non-existent. He just doesn't seem like the type of person who would do something like this…"

"We've seen what jealousy can do to a person Ginga. It's part of our job to never draw conclusions that forego the evidence. And right now, the evidence points towards one Yuuno Scrya."

Ginga sighed again as she ran her free hand through her hair.

"I suppose you're right… Still, contact that Aria Liese and get that alibi checked out."

"What're you going to do?" Vice asked curiously as he and Ginga moved towards the bull pen.

Ginga retrieved her coat from her desk chair. "There's just a few things I want to check out, some people I want to talk to."

"Okay, good luck." Vice waved his partner goodbye as he picked up the phone from his desk to contact Yuuno's assistant.

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter VI }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	7. Chapter VII

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_I was still a bit out of sorts when I returned to Fate's room. I had been shocked when Yuuno was arrested and that shock had quickly been replaced by disbelief. But then there also was the issue of whether or not I should tell Fate about it._

_Upon returning to Fate's room I saw that Caro had calmed down and Fate was having a seemingly pleasant conversation with two of her 'kids'._

_The whole situation with Yuuno momentarily forgotten I noticed Fate's smile; it was a genuine smile and it was beautiful. The last time I had seen that smile was when I confessed my feelings to her. Which, granted hadn't even been that long ago. But with everything that was going on it felt like it had been ages._

"_Ah, Nanoha!" The cheeriness in Fate's voice did not go by me as she noticed my presence in the room._

_Some of the shock over what had happened with Yuuno must've still been visible on my face however as Fate's smile faltered slightly. "Is something wrong?"_

_Smiling I removed the final traces of shock from my expression and answered. "It can wait." And it could. I'd be damned if I ruined this moment of joy. I would wait until Erio and Caro had gone, and not a moment earlier._

_Luckily Fate seemed content to let it rest for the moment as her attention turned back to the two teenagers in the room._

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter VII**** }-~***

* * *

Erio and Caro unfortunately couldn't stay long and as far as Nanoha was concerned, had to leave way too soon.

There hung an awkward tension in the room as Nanoha didn't quite know how to break the news of Yuuno's arrest to Fate and Fate trying to patiently wait for Nanoha to tell her what was bothering her.

"Fate-chan."

"Nanoha."

Both women fell silent and couldn't help but giggle lightly at simultaneously speaking up.

Their giggles died quickly and Fate spoke first. "Nanoha, will you tell me now what's bothering you?"

Nanoha could hear the concern in her blonde girlfriend's voice. _Typical Fate-chan,_ she thought, _always worries about others first. Even in a situation like this…_

The brunette took a deep breath to steel her nerves.

"Yuuno was here; he came by to see how you and I were doing."

Fate smiled, "That's very thoughtful of him." Despite the fact she had always disliked Yuuno for stealing the love of her life – an irrational thought, she knew at the time, since she hadn't even had the courage to confess to her best friend. But that didn't prevent her from having it – it wasn't like she hated the guy or couldn't stand him. In fact, despite everything that had passed between them, she _did_ consider him somewhat of a friend.

"He was arrested." Nanoha's voice pulled Fate out of her thoughts and caused her to stare incredulously at the elementary school teacher.

Afraid that she already knew the answer, Fate asked the question anyways. "For what…?"

"They suspect him of…" Nanoha's voice trailed off so she made an arm motion indicating the entirety of Fate in her hospital bed.

Fate did not respond; her eyes had grown wide and her mouth hung slightly open. Nanoha scooted a bit closer to her girlfriend and observed Fate's expression carefully. Afraid that Fate might forget to breathe – something she actually did seem to forget – Nanoha asked softly, "Fate-chan?"

No response, no movement. Nothing.

Without another word, Nanoha carefully laid her hands on Fate's shoulders before pulling the blonde's head to her chest as she started stroking her hand through golden blonde hair.

Fate just stared ahead of her. If she were perfectly honest, Nanoha would say she was more scared in that moment than when she first received the call from Hayate about the attack. Nanoha had seen Fate put up walls or put on a mask to hide her emotions, but this was different.

Fate had locked up entirely.

Nanoha could do nothing more than hold her girlfriend and whisper sweet nothings. Fate didn't react, her body was somehow limp and rigid at the same time, completely unresponsive.

But, even though her body was unmoving, Fate's mind was running at high speed, going over every single interaction she'd had with Nanoha's ex-boyfriend. She was looking for anything, anything at all that would show Yuuno to be a violent person. Anything that could make sense of the police suspecting him.

Her mind led her to a conversation she'd had with the blonde archaeologist back when Nanoha was still together with him. Fate was visiting and had joined the two of them for dinner when Nanoha had to go to the bathroom, leaving the two blondes alone for a moment.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

"_So… How's law school?" Yuuno asked politely._

"_Good, good." Was the answer._

"_That's… good." Yuuno smiled. The atmosphere in the room became awkward quickly._

_It was silent for a moment._

"_How are you treating Nanoha?" Yuuno nearly choked on his bite of food at that one. He quickly recovered but before he got a chance to answer, Fate spoke again._

"_Because if I ever hear you're hurting her, I will hurt you." Fate glared at Yuuno, causing the man to gulp. Fate turned her attention back to her food while Yuuno just stared at her for a second._

"_You're in love with her aren't you?" This time it was Fate's turn to nearly choke._

_Questioning ruby locked onto amused emerald._

"_I. Uh… That is to say… what?" Fate sputtered, unable to form a coherent sentence._

_Yuuno just smiled. "I think I have my answer. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. She won't know unless you want her to, but you're her best friend Fate and I would do nothing to have the two of you lose that."_

_Before the law student had a chance to answer, Nanoha came back from the bathroom._

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Ginga was walking through the hospital corridors. She was on her way back to Fate's room after her interrogation of Yuuno and she had some questions she still had to ask Fate regarding the assault.

Arriving at her destination she knocked on the door.

"Yes? Come in." She barely heard the weary and subdued voice of one Miss Takamachi call from the other side of the door.

Carefully opening the door and stepping into the hospital room she saw a sight that she wished she could say was new to her, but it wasn't.

The dead-looking eyes, the expressionless face. She'd seen them plenty of times as part of her job as a detective. It was something that never became easier. In a sense, it was more frightening than the crying and screaming. It was total despair.

Without a word, the detective approached the two women sitting on the hospital bed. Nanoha had wrapped her arms around the form of Fate. Unshed tears were making the brunette's eyes glisten in the fluorescent lighting. Ginga sat down on the chair that Nanoha had left in favour of sitting on the bed to better support her girlfriend.

Staying silent, the detective laid a hand on the teacher's knee and gave the distraught woman a comforting smile. Nanoha responded with a sad smile of her own before she blinked, finally allowing the tears to stream down her cheeks.

Nanoha placed a barrage of kisses on the top of the attorney's head while no longer making any effort to stop her tears.

A warm hand found its way to her cheek. Blinking her tears away, Nanoha noticed it to be the hand of her blonde beloved. She leaned into the touch and closed her eyes, letting loose an shuddering breath.

"I've never liked seeing you cry." Fate's voice was soft and gentle as it always was when she spoke up. "I'm sorry I caused you to cry, I just needed to… process."

Nanoha kissed the top of Fate's head again. "I understand." She whispered, not relinquishing her hold on her love.

It was then that Fate's eyes fell on the detective sitting in the chair next to the bed.

"Detective Nakajima, can I help you?" Fate smiled politely. She wanted to demand what evidence they had on Yuuno; going over every interaction she'd had with the blonde male, she just couldn't see him as the type to lash out like that.

The detective looked thoughtful for a second. "I can come back later if now is not the time."

"Now's as good a time as any." Fate spoke gently before turning to Nanoha. "Nanoha, why don't you grab a coffee from the cafeteria downstairs while I talk with the detective?"

Nanoha looked positively shocked; "Are you sure you don't want me to stay?" Nanoha's voice still sounded raspy from her crying.

"I can handle it." she answered, kissing the tears that were still on Nanoha's cheeks away. "Go. Grab yourself a drink; you need to make sure you stay hydrated."

Nanoha couldn't help the short chuckle that escaped her lips. Giving Fate a final chaste kiss on the lips, she stood up and left the hospital room. But not before giving Ginga a glance that said: 'If I come back here and Fate is upset, I'll make you regret it.'

Ginga acknowledged the unspoken promise with a curt nod.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Fate didn't miss a beat; as soon as Nanoha had left she immediately turned to the detective. "I take it you have some more questions for me?"

"Yes, actually I-"

"Before you go any further," Fate interrupted Ginga with purpose in her voice, "I have a question for _you_."

Ginga shrugged. "Very well."

"Is it true that you have arrested Nanoha's ex, Yuuno Scrya?"

Ginga nodded. "Yes, at the moment he is our lead suspect. I can't say much but he gave us an alibi that we're currently looking into."

"He didn't do it."

"Pardon me?" Ginga raised an eyebrow at the blonde sitting in the hospital bed.

"Let me rephrase that. I don't believe he did it."

Ginga subjected the children's advocate to a scrutinizing gaze for a moment. Fate's body language indicated she was absolutely serious. "Why not?" Ginga raised the question.

"I spoke with him the day after he and Nanoha broke up."

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter VII }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	8. Chapter VIII

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

"_I spoke with him the day after Nanoha broke up with him."_

_That shut the detective sitting next to my bed up quite quickly. I watched her stare at me for a moment before realization of what exactly I had said seemed to dawn on her face._

_I laughed a bit despite myself, but the detective's face was honestly quite priceless._

_My laughter seemed to snap her out of it. "Sorry, I was just under the impression you've had no contact since…" her voice trailed off as she was clearly unsure of how to finish that sentence._

"_It is – was – our secret I suppose. Not even Nanoha knows." I explained._

"_So that's why you sent her away." Ginga nodded to herself._

"_Yes, that's part of it at least." I confirmed with a solemn nod. I had put myself into courtroom mode. This was serious and I wanted it resolved ASAP._

"_So, what did the two of you talk about?"_

"_Nanoha, of course." I smiled at the memory for a moment. "He uh, he actually wished me luck. Said he had always known she had feelings for me though he was honest enough to say he hoped she would never realize it. Nanoha could be – can be – pretty dense. Sometimes."_

"_And, from that you determined he would never hurt you?" Ginga asked me sceptically._

"_No." I spoke determinately. "He told me that I'd better not hurt her. There was only one thing he wanted. He just wanted for Nanoha to be happy."_

"_Sounds like he was jealous to me."_

"_Yuuno Scrya is the very epitome of selflessness. I may not have liked him as he was standing between me and Nanoha for the longest time but he gave her up so she could be happy with me. He could've stopped her from leaving him, but he didn't. He didn't!" I was almost screaming by this point, using the voice and face I used when chewing out scumbags that mistreated children._

_Taking deep breaths, I managed to calm down a bit. "My point is… Look, he knew how happy I made Nanoha. He might not have liked it, just as much as I disliked how happy _he_ made her. But like me, all he cares about is Nanoha's happiness. And he undoubtedly knows how upset Nanoha would be if anyone of her friends got hurt. He wouldn't do that to her. He wouldn't hurt her like that."_

_Detective Nakajima opened her mouth to respond but right then, there was knocking on the door. Nanoha had returned._

"_Come in." I called._

_Nanoha came back into the room carrying two cups of coffee. I smiled at her as she gave me one of the cups. I looked back at the purple-haired detective._

"_I hope that answered all of your questions Detective. I'd like it if you left us alone now."_

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter VIII**** }-~***

* * *

Yuuno Scrya sat in his house, a house that hadn't really felt like home ever since Nanoha left him. His alibi had checked out and he was allowed to go home. He was exhausted but his attempts to go to sleep and have a nap were unsuccessful. There was just one single question running through his head that kept him from being able to rest: how the _hell_ did his sperm end up in…? It just wasn't possible was it? Unless someone had… but, nobody knew right? Only he and Fate knew.

Only the two of them knew of their agreement; not even Nanoha knew.

Yuuno knew he had to talk to Fate, but the police explicitly told him he wasn't be allowed to contact her. Yuuno shook and hung his head in defeat.

_How did things get this messed up? I only wanted what was best for Nanoha, and now this shit happens._

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Today was a – relatively – good day for Fate; she was finally allowed to go home. Her injuries had healed enough to where it was no longer necessary for her to be at the hospital. She would still need her rest, but she was incredibly happy she could rest back at home.

Something she was less thrilled about was the nightmares. Maybe not so much the nightmares themselves, but the prospect of Nanoha finding out about them. Fate hadn't told anybody about the nightmares yet; she felt like they were a sign of weakness and Fate didn't like showing weakness. Even back when she just started living with Lindy when she was nine, she kept quiet about the nightmares she had back then.

That did not mean of course, that Lindy didn't know. However, the teal-haired woman never confronted Fate about her nightmares and instead waited until she was ready to open up. Which, all in all, took the blonde around six months.

Even then, it had taken Lindy another two weeks to convince Fate to see someone about her nightmares.

And now, despite that her experience with psychiatrists was a positive one, since it had really helped her back when she was nine, that did not mean she wanted to go through that again. Maybe though, for Nanoha, she would.

But there were bigger fish to fry. First and foremost, Fate had to get a hold of Yuuno. A need that was prompted by her most recent conversation with her brother.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_Fate and Chrono sat in silence. The former was sitting upright in her hospital bed while the latter sat in a chair._

_Fate had asked for – or rather, demanded – an update regarding the investigation concerning her assault. She wanted to know exactly why Yuuno was a suspect and if there were any other leads the police were looking into._

_Albeit reluctantly, Chrono had been asking some questions around the precinct and had gotten the information his younger sister had requested. And now he was working up the courage to actually tell her what he had found out._

_As he sat there, Chrono felt red eyes watching him expectantly. He knew Fate could wait all day if that was what it took. Fate may have been a gentle and caring person but she was also very headstrong._

_Cutting through the tension that was building in the hospital room Chrono finally spoke: "So, I've been asking some questions, talking to lieutenant Nakajima-"_

"Lieutenant_ Nakajima?" Fate asked, creasing her eyebrows into a frown._

"_Yes, Detective Nakajima's father. Their whole family is in law enforcement actually. Subaru, Detective Nakajima's younger sister is a uniformed cop."_

"_Okay, so… what did you find out about Yuuno being a suspect?"_

_Chrono took a deep breath; whatever he was going to say next, he knew Fate was not going to like it._

"_They arrested him based on evidence from your rape kit." Chrono said, averting his gaze and clasping his hands in front of him._

_It took Fate a moment to get what Chrono's statement implied. As soon as realization dawned on her, a hand flew in front of her mouth, but not before a gasp managed to escape it._

_Chrono waited a moment to let the information sink in before continuing. "The thing is though," Chrono waited for Fate's eyes to turn back to him, signifying he had her attention. "Yuuno has a solid alibi."_

"_Then how did…?" Fate's voice trailed off as she couldn't find it in herself to finish that sentence._

"_They don't know at this time."_

_Another moment of silence passed as a million thoughts passed through Fate's head and Chrono just sat there, waiting for Fate to process._

"_I need to speak to Yuuno." Fate finally seemed to have snapped out of her trance._

_Chrono wanted to know why, but he knew he wouldn't get an answer unless Fate told him willingly. "That'll be a problem; at this point in time the police will not permit him to contact you. Even if you contact him, he could still get into major trouble."_

_Fate nodded but it was clear she would find a way to speak to Yuuno sooner or later._

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

"Hey, ready to go?" Nanoha's cheerful voice pulled Fate out of her memories. Unconsciously, a smile formed itself on the blonde's lips.

"Yes, get me out of here please!" Fate had already dressed herself out of her hospital gown and into her street clothes. A task that had taken a bit longer than usual due to the pain in her nether regions, but that did not deter the blonde's enthusiasm at finally getting out of the hospital – or the Hell of a thousand questions, as she liked to call it.

A nurse pushing a wheelchair followed behind Nanoha.

"A wheelchair? Really?" the blonde attorney sighed exasperatedly.

"Standard procedure Fate-chan. Once we get home you can walk for yourself." Nanoha assured her.

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter VIII }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


	9. Chapter IX

_**Disclaimer:  
**_I do not claim ownership of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series or franchise. This is a non-profit fan-written story written exclusively for entertainment purposes.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

_Home sweet home, an expression I never understood up until now. When I was younger home was one of the last places I wanted to be; that was where Mother was after all._

_But now, after finally getting out of the hospital and after those gruesome things that happened a couple of weeks ago, I fully understood 'home sweet home'._

_Nanoha and I arrived at our apartment building. It used to be my apartment building when Nanoha and Yuuno were still together. But after she had left him I asked her to stay with me instead. So now, it was our apartment building._

_After we'd gotten inside the building I was so thankful for whomever had built this building to have elevators installed; despite my injuries having healed mostly, walking was still a painful endeavour and I didn't even want to imagine walking up three flights of stairs in my current condition._

_When we finally got inside out apartment Nanoha walked me to our bedroom where I carefully lowered myself on my side of the bed._

"_Why don't you take a short nap and I will make us something to eat, okay?" Nanoha said._

"_Okay, thanks Nanoha." I smiled appreciatively at her before making myself comfortable. It didn't take long for me to fade out of consciousness and fall asleep._

* * *

***~-{ Broken }-~*  
*~-{ Written by Zarosguth }-~***  
***~-{ ****Chapter IX**** }-~***

* * *

Nanoha was in the kitchen of her and Fate's apartment, just quickly preparing a late lunch slash early dinner for her and Fate to enjoy once the blonde attorney would wake up from her nap.

As it neared six o' clock Nanoha decided to check up on her lover. As she entered the dark bedroom she heard a small whimper coming from the bed. Nanoha felt a rush of panic surge through her heart and all but dashed to Fate's side of the bed where she knelt down. Looking at the blonde's sleeping face she saw her sweating profusely while her face held an expression of panic and a few tears were streaming down her face.

Careful not to spook her, Nanoha softly whispered to Fate, asking her to wake up.

Despite Nanoha's gentle whispering, Fate awoke with a start. Her red eyes, wide and panicked looked around quickly, trying to take in their surroundings. A soft sigh accompanied the release of the tension in the blonde's limbs and her eyes started to look more clear and focused.

Nanoha was gently stroking Fate's cheek. Fate leaned into the touch of the brunette's hand on her face and took a deep breath.

Swallowing to get rid of the dryness in her throat and not being very successful at that, Fate's voice sounded raspy when she spoke: "Hey Nanoha."

"Hey Fate-chan." Nanoha whispered back, continuing her ministrations. "Are you okay?" There was no pity in her voice, only concern which warmed Fate's heart.

"Just a nightmare." The blonde admitted, gulping once more in an attempt to stop her tears.

Nanoha closed her eyes and sighed before smiling sadly at Fate and using her other hand to hold Fate's.

"When did you start having nightmares?" Nanoha asked, no accusation in her voice, only concern.

"Ever since the first time we talked to Detective Nakajima." Fate admitted hoarsely as she became teary-eyed again. She felt bad for never bringing it up with Nanoha, but with everything going on she just didn't want to add anything more to the pile of shit that was the entire situation.

"Okay." Nanoha whispered.

The two of them just sat there for a while. Nanoha never stopped stroking Fate's cheek while holding her hand and squeezing it reassuringly.

After a few minutes Nanoha slowly got up and placed a gentle kiss on Fate's temple. "Dinner's ready when you are." She said before leaving the bedroom, giving Fate some space.

Once she was back in the kitchen Nanoha took a look at the dining room table which she'd set before she went to check up on Fate and saw that the food had gotten cold. While putting it into the microwave to reheat it Nanoha wonders why Fate never told her about the fact she was having nightmares. Was the blonde afraid Nanoha would be upset with her? Or maybe that Nanoha would insist for Fate to see someone? If Nanoha were completely honest with herself, she'd have to admit she would want for Fate to seek help if she was plagued by nightmares. But Nanoha would never force her and the brunette was sure Fate knew that.

While waiting for the food to heat back up and Fate to get out from the bedroom Nanoha made a mental note to talk to Fate about the nightmares later.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

It didn't take long for Fate to leave the bedroom and join Nanoha for dinner. There hung a semi-awkward silence around them as both weren't entirely sure how to bring up the topic of Fate's nightmares.

Nanoha was the first to speak: "I've had them too, nightmares I mean."

Fate looked up, but didn't respond.

Taking Fate's response as encouragement to continue, Nanoha did so: "I would dream that I was still at the teacher's convention and Hayate would call me." Nanoha took a deep breathe to force back the tears that she felt forming in her eyes. "But instead of telling me you were hurt, she would tell me you were killed."

A single sob escaped the brunette, but she continued, fully determined to get her full point across. "I would wake up sweating and crying before coming back to reality. In those moments I wanted nothing more than to rush to the hospital to see if you were okay." Nanoha paused.

Fate smiled nervously; she recognized Nanoha had yet to make her point, even though the blonde had a feeling where this was going, so she remained quiet.

"It wasn't until I talked to Hayate about it that I felt a bit better… What I am trying to say is that it may help to talk about it. I'm not suggesting for you to go to a professional, but if you ever want to talk about it… I'm here, and so are our friends.

"Please think about it okay?" Nanoha asked before turning back to the food on her plate, leaving Fate with the room to respond only if she wanted to.

"I will…" Fate started uneasily, causing Nanoha to look up ever so carefully, "… think about it." The blonde finished.

Nanoha smiled; she knew not to expect much more from the blonde at this time.

Fate was inwardly glad Nanoha would leave it rest for now. She knew the brunette was right, but right now Fate just wanted to enjoy being home in their apartment together. She didn't want to have to think about everything for at least the rest of the day.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

That evening Nanoha and Fate were cuddling on the sofa. Fate was sitting nice and snug in Nanoha's arms. Normally, Fate –due to her higher length – would be the one to hold Nanoha. They'd done so often times when they would have sleep-overs before they officially became a couple not too long ago. But this time, Fate allowed herself to be the one to be held. In fact, it was her that suggested the switch and she was glad to have made the suggestion; she felt safe in her girlfriend's arms.

The television was on, some kind of music channel but neither woman was really paying attention. Nanoha was absentmindedly playing with Fate's golden tresses whilst Fate was just glad to feel her girlfriend's warmth.

As midnight slowly approached, Fate could not supress a long yawn from coming up. Nanoha giggled in response. "How about we head for bed?" the brunette suggested in a whisper.

Fate smiled and nodded before slowly untangling herself from Nanoha's embrace.

Nanoha changed into her nightgown first, an oversized white shirt that was slightly too big for her medium-sized frame with long sleeves that reached beyond her hands.

Once changed and her teeth brushed, she climbed into their bed. Nanoha smiled knowing that for the first time in quite a while, she wouldn't have to sleep in the large bed alone. Her cheeks flushed slightly when she remembered how often she and Fate made love in this bed when they first became a couple. Nearly every night was filled with sweet love-making that kept both women only wanting more and more of each other.

They had made love every night until Nanoha had to leave for the convention. Before Fate was assaulted. The smile on Nanoha's face faded; she remembered a few of Fate's cases that had dealt with children whom had been sexually abused. She saw how those children would shy away from physical contact. The same was the case for victims of non-sexual abuse, but the ones that had been sexually abused were even more scared.

Nanoha wondered how Fate would handle being in a single bed with another person. Would she shy away from the brunette's touch? Or would she allow it. Nanoha decided her best course of action would be to let Fate be the one to initiate any contact, like they'd done while Fate was still in the hospital.

Satisfied with her decision, the elementary school teacher patiently waited for her girlfriend to enter their bedroom.

**{]****-~*****(X)*****~-****[}**

Nanoha had waited for nearly ten minutes now and she was starting to get worried; she thought it best to give Fate her space as well as all the time the blonde would need to prepare herself for bed but she'd expected Fate to be ready by now.

Another five minutes later Nanoha could no longer fight the urge to check up on the blonde, so she stepped out of bed and made her way to the bathroom.

Quietly approaching the bathroom, Nanoha caught a silent sobbing from beyond the bathroom door. Not wanting to spook Fate she softly knocked on the door to make her presence known.

"Fate-chan? Is everything okay?"

The sobbing stopped, but no response came. Nanoha knocked on the door again.

"Fate-chan?"

Nanoha waited for a moment, but when Fate again didn't respond, Nanoha knew she had to get into the bathroom.

"Fate-chan, I'm coming in."

Nanoha opened the bathroom door and stepped inside to find Fate – in her underwear – on her knees on the floor.

Nanoha gasped before jumping forward to kneel down besides Fate. She extended her arms towards the blonde in invitation but didn't make contact. Fate looked up and locked eyes with Nanoha. Nanoha saw that Fate's eyes had become puffy from crying and her lower lip was still trembling.

New sobs escaped the blonde's lips as she threw herself in Nanoha's arms.

Nanoha held her until she calmed down and her tears subsided.

"Do you want to tell me why you were crying?" Nanoha asked gently, trying to coax it out of the blonde without forcing her.

Fate didn't speak, but Nanoha felt her nod against her chest. Fate carefully untangled one arm from her embrace with Nanoha and pointed a finger at the mirror.

That's when it hit Nanoha. Fate hadn't yet seen her own reflection after the attack had happened. Seeing her own nearly naked body must've caused her to react like this.

Nanoha's suspicions were confirmed when she heard Fate whisper: "I'm damaged, broken." Followed by a sad sniffle.

Nanoha tightened her hold on Fate. "Listen to me Fate-chan. You're not damaged. You're not bro- ken." Nanoha's voice broke as she spoke, but she continued regardless.

"You've been hurt, yes. But you will heal. I will help you heal. No matter what it takes." Nanoha felt tears well up, but she managed to hold them back.

Fate sighed, and Nanoha felt her body relax against her own. "Thank you, Nanoha." It was barely a whisper, but Nanoha heard it nonetheless.

Nanoha let go of a breath of her own. "Anytime Fate-chan, anytime."

The two of them stayed there for a few minutes until Nanoha started to become cold.

"Now, how about we get off of this cold floor and into our nice, warm bed?"

Fate giggled. "Let's." She agreed.

* * *

***~-{ End of Chapter IX }-~***

* * *

Please leave me a review telling me what you think; I love getting feedback and I don't mind people being critical. In fact, I welcome it!

***~-{ ****May we meet again, fare thee well!**** }-~***


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